September 23, 2011

Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly honored Foley Hoag LLP partner Michele Whitham as a Top Woman of Law during a ceremony today at the John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center in Boston.

The fourth annual Top Women of the Law awards honored legal educators, trailblazers and role models who have demonstrated outstanding accomplishments in social justice, advocacy and business. Whitham is both a former co-managing partner of Foley Hoag and a widely respected employment law practitioner, with a particular focus on workplace and corporate data security and privacy.

“This award is well deserved. Michele is widely recognized as a leader not only in her practice and within our firm, but also in pro bono and community involvement and mentoring the next generation of lawyers,” said Adam Kahn, Foley Hoag co-managing partner.

Whitham represents employers in federal and state courts, administrative fora, and alternative dispute resolution proceedings. She has been lead counsel in employment law cases throughout Massachusetts, New England and more than a dozen states nationwide. She has particular strength in litigating claims involving computer fraud and abuse by employees (including electronic theft of proprietary information and other system incursions); defending complex EEO, ERISA, and wage and hour claims (including class actions); enforcing non-competition and non-solicitation agreements; and resolving executive compensation disputes.

Based on her experience in litigating and advising on data theft, systems breach and cyber-attack cases dating back to 2005, Whitham founded and is a co-chair of Foley Hoag’s Security and Privacy Practice Group. She conducts internal investigations of alleged employee misconduct and protects companies from internal and external threats to computer systems and proprietary information. Her work reflects advanced knowledge of computer forensic discovery and recovery techniques, and she has successfully litigated to interrupt cyber attacks and identify cyber attackers.

In addition to her legal practice, Whitham is active in community service and fundraising efforts, including co-chairing various fundraising events for public service organizations. Among her community commitments, she is a director and past president of Heading Home, an organization that provides permanent housing for homeless families, and a trustee of Wentworth Institute of Technology.

About Foley Hoag LLP

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